December 10, 2009

Okay ladies and gents, I never thought I'd come home to a clean familyroom but I did the other night! My hubby is nesting big time... me? Not so much... I just work 10 hrs a day, go to class, do the laundry, eat and sleep, and oh yea, I shower too. That's pretty much it... I'll straighten the house, but honestly, I'm tired... In two weeks, I will be 7 months preggers and I'm just not able to do the things that I am used to... Carrying extra weight is hard. LOL. So back to the hubby... he cleaned the hell out of the familyroom and it so needed a good cleaning. We've been in our home for about 5 years and the familyroom has never been cleaned the way he did it. He was quite proud of himself as I tried to pick my mouth off the floor. He scrubbed the white tile floor that was filthy from the dogs, he wiped down the walls, he dusted, vacumed and pulled the furnisher out from the walls... He did the picture frames, he got rid of that ugly wholey couch that I though would never go and so much more. The upstairs furnisher has been moved to the familyroom in the basement so that we can get new furnisher upstairs and make it into Edward's playroom. I had to laugh last night. Pete and I were watching Daisy pick up her food and drop it on the floor and munch on the bits and pieces, meanwhile, Pete is biting his lip trying not to scream as Daisy walks away with a few crumbs left on the floor. I made sure to get it before Pete had a heart attack... Now he knows that cleaning is a bitch and he wonders why I don't feel like doing it all the time... And now that I know he's capable of cleaning... well, he has no excuses now why he can't help me with the house... We've been together 10 years and he has never cleaned the way he has this month... And don't get me wrong, I appreciate it!

December 8, 2009

"It's Cold!" Do you know how many times a day I hear this from my husband? It's driving me crazy... Yesterday when I got home from work, the house felt like an oven and I asked Pete if he had the heat on... he says "yes for a little..." He knows that my pregnant body cannot handle the heat! I'm a hot box! So last night about 9:30pm. I was in bed with the dogs reading "Breaking Dawn" when I hear Pete coming up the hall... "Man It's Cold!" "Look at my nose Nicole! It's red!" Me: "I see that... put some more clothes on... It will be okay." LOL... I'm evil but he was so funny... His poor nose was red and he was even wearing two sweaters, a hat, sweat pants, socks and slippers. :) So as he turns away, I hear the heater click. Sighs... I didn't argue... I just let him turn the heat on so that I did not hear "It's Cold!" again...

Last week, I sent an email to someone asking if I could use a layout for one of my calls... And she emailed me back... And it was such a nice email that I had to share!

Hi Nicole!

Gosh thanks so much! Obviously this is fine with me ;) It was actually donefor as a manufacturer sponsored product spotlight over at A MillionMemories, so I'm taking it down everywhere, but have asked of Michelle thequestion if it's ok as I've not been there long & am unsure of the protocol.

I'll let you know if there's any drama's, but otherwise, yay!!

On a personal note, I'd love to send a huge thanks to everyone atScrapSteet - I'm getting a little bored with the mags we have here is Aus,and am loving the variety of scrappers & topics you cover in the mag everymonth - not to mention I'm just a little bit of a fan of your work ;)

So yesterday, I met my mom and best friend Mischelle at "The Grille" for lunch at 12:00. After we ate, mom insisted that Mischelle take me to finish my baby registry at BabysRus and start one at Target as well. Mischelle knows me too well... I am not a huge fan on shopping! I have no interest... Normally, I go to the mall, get what I need specifically and get out. So we went to finish the registry. It took about 4 hours, we were done by 5ish. I have to say, it wasn't as bad as I thought! We actually had a great time... the baby stuff is just too cute! I can't wait! I did make the mistake of trying out several rockers... it was hard for me to get up and motivated to shop again. LOL. I was so comfortable! Mischelle just looked at me smiling. (She will be the baby's God Mother). I love her like a sister and she has always been there for me, for the past 11 years! We went to college together years ago. Lots of fun memories :)

Well I've got a really busy day ahead of me! So better get going... oh wait... The hubby is still nesting.... He scrubbed the family room floor, windows etc yesterday! He also got rid of tons of furnisher and moved the upstairs furnisher downstairs! Our goal is to redo the upstairs and get new furnisher for when the baby comes. I'm so excited that everything is coming along. Now Pete just needs to do the bathrooms and rip up the carpet since we have wood floors, and I'll get throw rugs for upstairs.

And after the baby comes, I'm going to paint the kitchen, diningroom and livingroom...

December 2, 2009

Today has been a great day! I woke up this morning at a 8 am. to walk the furbabies, then came back home and crawled back in bed since I am off today to sleep in a bit. My husband woke me about 9:30am. He brough me bacon and eggs and a glass of orange juice to bed and locked the dogs out so I could eat in peace. They were all on the bed, even the cat begging until Pete got a hold of them :) I've been working on a mini today as a Christmas gift. The Christmas cards are almost done. And tonight is the last night for one of my classes. After tonight, I only have 5 more courses to complete for my Bachelors Degree in Business Management. I'm so excited! I'm beginning to see the light at the tunnel.

I'm almost done reading the Twilight series for the 3rd time... Hey, I buy so many books, it's getting expensive so I decided to read them again to save money this month... :) Don't act like you haven't read the series more then once. I know you did!

Well, Off to scrap a bit more and then I'm gonna read a bit, take a shower and head out for my 6 pm. class.

November 29, 2009

So my wonderful mother has spent two days here, painting the baby's bedroom! I'm feeling much better now about things... I was beginning to wonder if I'd ever start on the room! Now I just need to get new carpeting in there before I get a crib and dresser. Here's the crib set that I really like! Isn't it adorable!

November 17, 2009

I really can't believe that I'm in my 6th month pregnancy already... Seriously, I always hear preggers say that the time drags and they can't wait to have the baby... Personally, the time is going by so fast! Too fast... I'M NOT READY YET! LOL. I still have to get the baby's room ready and do some things in the house. I still have a few classes that I need to take before he arrives. (School and birthing classes). But I honestly cannot complain! I feel great and have not had any problems so far (knock on wood). Edward has been moving much more now... I can totally feel the movements and when he is turning around in there, It feels creepy but I love it because he's already active. He reminds me everyday that I have something to look forward to and I can not wait. Every now and then, I'll look at his sonogram photos just to see him... I just know he's going to be handsome.

November 16, 2009

So about a month ago, while I was at the grocery store, I was craving pancakes... I have never bought the stuff to make it because well, I'm not a big breakfast eater, nor am I great cook... So I bought it thinking that Pete could handle making us some pancakes.

Well when I got home that day, he saw the pancake mix and replies, "Pancake mix? What did you buy this for?" And I replied, "I thought you could maybe make me some pancakes sometime..." And his response was, "You are crazy, I've never made pancakes before..." Me: "How hard can it be? You just add water to the mix." I say this knowing full well that I might not be able to do this simple task. LOL. So they sat in the cabinet untouched for one month.

However, this morning when I woke up, got dressed etc, and walked passed the kitchen, Pete was at the stove flipping pancakes for me! It was a nice surprise for me before I had to leave for work. You see, Pete is not a morning person... and for him to wake up early during the week just to make ME breakfast, well it's big! And very much appreciated... It's been awhile since he has done something for me... and It meant a lot to me... Thanks Pete, I love you!

November 9, 2009

Every Year for the past 5 years, I've been collecting ornaments from Pier 1. I just love how pretty they are! Here are a few new ones I bought over the weekend. I can't wait to put up a Christmas tree. We didn't do one last year because life got ahead of us... but this year, I want a tree! I love watching tv at night with the fireplace going and glancing over the Christmas tree with the lights blinking on and off. It's something I look forward to each year.

November 8, 2009

Hello ladies! Wanna see what I've been working on all weekend? I decided to do a makeover on my bedroom because I Was tired of how ghetto it looked. We had white blinds up and nothing on the walls... no pictures... It was just plain. A bed, two dressers and a nightstand. That's it! Look at it now. It's amazing what a little paint and some pictures will do to make a room look good... oh and the pillows. I love the colors!! The red, blue and teal works so well together. I had a vision before I went looking for a paint color and curtains and it was exactly like this!

November 6, 2009

So last night when I got home from work, Pete was making mashed potatoes and steaks for dinner. I walk into the house and he tells me "perfect timing." And it did smell so good! So while we were eating, hubby was telling me about his new activity. He tells me that he ran three times in one day. I just looked at him, trying not to laugh... So instead of laughing right away, I asked him how far did he run... He tells me "up to the hill" making it seem like a long run... But in reality, it's only about 2 blocks up our street... might not even be two blocks! And i'm supose to be impressed? So I asked him what made him decide to get up from the computer chair and run. He tells me "well, I need to get into shape if I'm going to join the Navy." Yes... he's still thinking he's still young enough to join if he can manage to get into shape... I just don't see it happening... I mean, the idea sounds great but Pete likes to sit at the computer 12 hours a day playing computer games, not working out. And when i mentioned this to Pete, he pokes me in the arm, "feel this, do you know how fast I can move this finger? I kill lots of people in one night with the push of this finger." LMAO, crazy man. That's about all he can do! What about the dishes, the vacuming, the dusting, the laundry, the grocery shopping, the pet store runs, the bathrooms? When I mention these, he replies that it's a woman's job... Some days, I wish I was a man so that all I was responsible for doing would be to take the trash out and maybe load the dish washer... oh and pay the bills.

November 5, 2009

I'm not sure if I mentioned about hubby begging me to go to Baskin Robins for sundaes on Sunday evening? I did... but let me tell you, he's a mess...

So Tuesday night, Hubby calls work at 5:45, 15 MINS before I'm scheduled to get off and asked if I'd stop at Taco bell... I hate it when he does this especially since I work 10 hr days and I just wanted to go home. He begs me and tells me that he's craving Hard tacos... silly man. So I played the good wife and went... I have to say, he must be having sympathy pains for me... i'm the one preggers here... and then yesterday, all day, he was eating chocolate... Alot too. I mentioned something to him because he rarely eats chocolate and he tells me that he's been craving chocolate... lol. Well the more he eats, the less I eat... I'm trying to eat healthy here... So far it's working out because my piggy of a husband takes care of the junk food but he knows to stay off the sour cream and onion potatoe chips or I'll kill him. hehe

November 1, 2009

I did a bit of scrapping today! Some layouts turned out great! And while I was busy creating, I decided to put the layouts that have been piling up away.

It's been raining on and off today so I decided to make a pot roast. Before you all say how proud of me you are... I have to admitted that I cheated a bit. All I did was empty the ingrediants that Betty Crocker put together and let it cook for 4 hours on high. LOL. But hubby was excited and wouldn't have known if I wasn't so honest about the process. LOL

October 28, 2009

This morning while I was walking the dogs, I couldn't help but notice the beautiful colors of the trees! Fall is truely here in my neighborhood. After the dogs were done their walk, I grabbed my camera to take a few shots of my street etc... And then headed to work.

October 27, 2009

Okay so I was looking through the knitted caps at Etsy and just couldn't help it... i'm already thinking about baby Edward's newborn portraits and props :) And I bought this cute little elephant for his room. I know. I need to get my priorities straight..., no knitted caps or toys until the nursery is done... or well started at least :) But can you blame me?

October 26, 2009

So yesterday, Pete had a pool tournament... He left here at about 11 am. and didn't get home til midnight... so imagine how he was when his friends dropped his sorry butt home last night? OMG! He was awful... He was talking and I could not understand what the hell he was talking about... and when I tell him that I don't know what he's talking about... he looks at me like i'm the idiot...

So then he starts playing with the dogs, blowing on them and omg I could smell the liquore. It was fowl too. So I deal with his drunk ass for about an hour... Let him have his fun with the dogs and finally I was like enough... So when he stands up, his pants fall down LMAO and he's completely naked from the waist down... I tell him to pull his pants up and he is so drunk that he almost fell on his face while he was reaching down to pull his pants up. LOL.

So finally I look at Daisy who's trying to fall alseep on the couch but Pete keeps messing with her... and so usually, she stays downstairs with Pete until he's ready for bed but not last night. LOL. She had enough... when I got up to go to bed, she was right behind me. I crawled in bed, she crawled under the blankets in the crank of my legs and we both went to sleep.

Hubby woke up today and all he said was, "I'm never drinking again." Well... thats what he gets for not being a responsible drinker... and I'm sure he'll be drinking again by the weekend.

So I decided to get off my butt today and go to the grocery store... It went well until I decided to leave the cart for a minute to check out the ice cream isle :) And when I went back to get my cart it was gone. I stood there thinking, "What the hell happened to my cart?" It was just here... for a minute. So I start looking around... maybe someone moved it to the side... but then I spot a woman in the line with my cart... I saw the yogurt in the front... and started walking towards her. She was starring off in space as I approached her, I said politely... (even when I was irritated) ma'am, you've got my cart... I'm not sure where yours is but I need you to take your cookies and give me my cart back so I can get out of here." LOL... And I did feel bad for her because she was totally oblivious! She kept apologizing and I kept saying it's okay...

October 14, 2009

Since I got my hair cut today I decided to take some photos lol... My hair always looks great when the hair stylist does it but It will never look this good again. Anyways, some of you are wondering what color am I painting the baby's room etc... I'm going to paint the room a pale yellow and the baby's room will be a jungle theme :) I already have it in my head... I just need to start working on the baby's room first... Clearing the guest room, painting etc... Which will be done next month.

October 13, 2009

Hello all! I was going to say Happy Monday but realized that it's Tuesday. (Since I had off yesterday, so thats throwing me off). Anyways, I had a doctor's appointment today. I only gained 3.5 pounds so I was happy... It beats the last gain of 9.5 pounds! The doctor says that everything looks great however... she said from this point forward... no sex! omg! Since my placenta is a bit thin she doesn't want to take the chance. I also asked about my final due date and it is February 24th. I went ahead and got a flu shot today... I didn't want to but what the heck... what's another needle right? And to be honest, she was done and I didn't even notice! Not nearly as bad as having my blood drawn. Mom's coming Thanksgiving weekend to paint the baby's room :) yeah and then I can start putting the room together.

October 10, 2009

So I had another wierd dream... but this one didn't involve the baby coming out a girl instead of a boy or of my mom trying to take my newborn baby from me. This one was more upsetting to me...

So somehow, I ended up with about 30 Basenji puppies and my husband told me that I had to get rid of them because we couldn't keep them. The problem was, I couldn't find a home for them. So I take all 30 pups to the coast and at the end of the coast, I put them each in little brown floatable crates but I also punched holes in the crates... So they could breath.

My logic in my dream? Well since I couldn't find a home for them, I put them in the floatable crates and was thinking that they all would float across the coast and someone on the other side of the ocean would discover them and provide them with a home!

When I told Pete about the dream, he called me a puppy killer... but in the dream, the everytime I went to grab a pup and put them in a crate I cried harder because it broke my heart and I didn't want to let them go... but I had no choice.

Now thinking about it, the waves would have sunk the crates... what a bad idea but I can't tell you how happy I was to wake up and discover that it was just a nightmare!!!

October 6, 2009

LOL, Last night I had a dream that I had a baby girl instead of a boy. I remember being so confused after I had the baby in my arms thinking a girl? Well that changes things! LOL. But I was still very happy in my dream. She had really dark hair and rosey cheeks. Funny that I remember the dream... I even remember parts of the delivery... that part, I do not particularly care for :)

October 1, 2009

September 25, 2009

Since I didn't have to work yesterday, Pete and I decided to take the dogs to the park one last time before it gets cold. They love going but when we get there, they pretty much stay to themselves. Paw Paw will socialize with the other dogs for a bit but not Daisy. Anything that goes near her she hides behind Pete's leg or she'll give a small growl that says back off! Lol. But she still had a great time. She just likes to watch the other dogs run around and play. I swear she thinks that she's human... or maybe she's too good for the other dogs? My little diva dog. Here are some of my favorite photos from yesterday. I wanted to take them down to the beach but we didn't have much time since I had to be home in time for my 6pm class.

September 22, 2009

So this morning I had a doctor's appointment to look at the baby's anatomy. The nurse asked if I'd like to know. Of course I did! Mom met me there this morning. She was so happy and excited as I was... We couldn't stop smiling and then they told us that it was a boy and mom and I hugged and kissed! It was a great moment. The look on my mom's face as she saw her very first grand-baby was one that i'll never forget. Oh and the baby was sucking his thumb at one point! I wish I had a picture of it. And before we left, I let mom cut a picture from the sonogram to take home with her. And after I stopped at McDonalds for breakfast, I called momom and left her a message and texted my friends as well! So now I know that we will have a Edward Zane Martel late February. The doctor did say that my placenta was a little thin at the bottom but not to worry because it happens in 5% of pregnant women and only 1% turn out to have early labor... So to be sure, I go back in 3 months for another sonogram to check to see if the Placenta filled out to where it needs to be. Mom didn't seem worried about it so I'm not going to worry about that just yet... Right now I'm going to enjoy the moment!

September 19, 2009

So yesterday was my 31st birthday! When I got home from work, hubby was waiting for me with dinner. He knew that I've been wanting a crab cake for weeks now and thats what was waiting for me :) Along with cold slaw (my favorite) and some carrots and broccoli (my veggies) for the day per Pete :) Also he bought me a cute quilted purse. And last, my mouth hit the floor... he hasn't gotten me a card in years... he's not big on them and he made sure that I knew that he made the extra effort this year. So it was a nice birthday.

Tonight, we are meeting Vicki for dinner. It's been awhile since we've seen her and it will be nice! Were meeting at 5 at one of my favorite restaurants called "Lemongrass" located in Annapolis.

Well thats it for now. Hopefully I'll get some scrapping done later because tomorrow I'm going to a friends to pretend to watch the football game... it will be nice to actually get out of the house. These past few months, i've felt like a hermit...

July 21, 2009

I think so! I just had my first doctor appointment today. I am 10 weeks, due February 7, 2010. I even got to hear the baby's heartbeat today and that was unreal! At first I was nervous because the nurse couldn't find a heartbeat and said that she needed to speak with a doctor... Well as I was waiting on the table, I couldn't help but think about that scene from Marley and Me! I know, it was horrible. But then she came in and found it! I couldn't stop smiling. And when I got home I cried! I just couldn't believe that I had a growing baby with a heartbeat! It made me feel better because i've been walking on eggshells these past few weeks trying to do the right things and it's been rough!

June 27, 2009

Here's a layout that I did for the June issue in Ready-Set-Create! I usually have a variety of things in the issue every few months and I do not post everything once the magazine is published so if you haven't subscribed yet... why not :) Click here if your interested!

June 14, 2009

Here's a layout that I did a few weeks ago. I was inspired by the book cover of "The Notebook" by Nicholas Sparks. I loved this book and I even cut scripts of the book and attached them to the layout! If your up for a challenge, visit the new Embellishment Blog to check out this week's chef paperie that I am running! Hope to see you there!

May 30, 2009

Stacey over at http://www.myscrapbooknook.com/ issued a challenge to use an object as inspiration on your layout. This was so much fun! I decided to use a book cover by James Patterson. I read the book over 5 years ago and it's been sitting on my shelf since then. Here's what I did! Enjoy!

May 13, 2009

Yesterday was a horrible day... So Monday night when I got home, I noticed that Paw-Paw's ear was worst. He has a big blister on his ear. Six months ago, it was small and the vet said not to worry about it... well it's so bad that he's miserable. So Pete called a different vet. Yesterday morning, I decided to take Daisy with me and Paw Paw to the vet because she'd be sick if I left her home without Paw Paw. They are always together... So I walked thema and put them in the car. Started the car and Pete left no gas in the truck! So i'm trying to get to the gas station before I run out of gas... and what happens? I get pulled over by a cop for going 45 on a 35 in a school zone. Sighs. The cop came to the window and explained the situation and I in returned apologized explaining that i'm almost out of gas, I have two crying dogs because they hate the car and I was on the way to the vet to schedule surgery for one of my dogs...

So he gave me a warning! Woohoo. After the vet, brought the dogs home and went to work to a crazy day... It just never ends.

I have to drop Paw Paw off Friday morning on the way to work for his surgery but I'm concerned about Daisy being home by herself so I'm going to ask Winnie, our neighbor if she'd let Daisy stay at her house Friday during the day to play with her dog Mr.T.

May 3, 2009

I made it! I'm a designer for ScrapStreet's online magazine! And yes i'm literally teary eyed here because i've been apart of the site for 3 yrs. and have come to know all of the wonderful ladies there! It's like a second family! I tried 3 times for the position so for those of you who did not make the call, do not be upset. You'll get there when you are truely ready! And now, I want to share the message that Dora posted with my announcement of joining the staff! Here it goes... this made me cry... and i'm not a cryer but Dora did me in because I realized how far i've come into this wonderful hobby! For those who aren't scrappers, you'll never understand... so here it goes:Ok, so I HAVE to tell the story.When I first decided we needed a magazine 3 1/2 years ago, I put out a call on several boards that you could pay to post such things on. and then sat to wait terrified that no one would want to submit and I would not get to have a magazine. and the very next day I received several items from one scrapper.She wrote a sweet little note and attached her pages. She had a fun style, but not much understanding of how to scan or photo her layouts. or how to resize them. They were huge and crooked and just not well presented. I sent her a note letting her know that we needed them fixed to be able to evaluate them. The next month was the same thing--crooked pages and sweet notes. By the fourth month I was really rooting for her. And in the 6th month she got it! there it was--a cute, straight page and I raced to ask her for it. She was already my good luck mascot in my mind.She joined the site and was soon loved by everyone as a little sister we would all trade our own in on. It is just impossible to not love her. This is not Nicole's first application for the team, but I am so honored to now announce that the first woman to ever sub to ScrapStreet magazine is now our newest staff member.Welcome Nicole! Thanks for having a spirit that NEVER gives up!

April 30, 2009

OMG, I was sooooo shocked this morning when I logged on to http://www.scrapstreet.com/ to check in with my friends and saw that I have a layout of mine on the cover of the magazine for May! I've never been on a cover before and it felt greeeeeeeat! So exciting! Thanks Dora! You rock! Wanna see? Click here!

April 25, 2009

Since it was a beautiful day, I took the dogs down to the beach. It was a beautiful day and the dogs needed a long walk. Love this picture :) Here's Daisy right by my side as usual. She's my girlie.

Paw paw was hilarious! He does NOT like the water and when he saw the ball in the other dog's mouth it was like the world disappeared... He never took his eyes off the ball and tried to take it. The other dog wasn't haven't it. LOL. Guess his parents didn't teach him how to share.